Electric furnace.



f'. LOUVRIBR.

ELECTRIC FURNACE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 22, 1910 Attorneys By W FRANQOIS LOUVRIE OF MEXICO, MEXICO.

ELECTRIC FURNACE.

Specification olf Letters Patent Patented aan. 2,1912.

Application led September 22, 1910. Serial No. 583,315.

To Mitcham et :may concern.'

Be 1t known that I, FnANoIs LoUvnrnR, a

citizen of the Republic of France, residing at Apartado 1984:, in vthe city of Mexico, Mexico, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Furnaces; and l do hereby vdeclare that the following is a full, clear, andexact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art'to which it appertains to make and use the saine.

The invention to be herelnafter described relates to a new process to distribute and regulate electric energy in electric furnaces.

Broadly speaking, it comprises one' orra more lined electrodes seated in the walls-of a furnace body; means for passing an electric current through the fixed electrodes and through the interior of the furnace; and means for leading the current out of the furnace.

In order to more clearly disclose the dif'- position, operation and use of the invention, reference should be had to the accompanying drawing forming part of the present ap' plication.

' Throughout the several figures of the drawings like reference characters designate the same parts ln the drawings, which show the process applied to a polyphase furnace: Figure 1 is a central, vertical cross section on line 1 1 of Fig. 2; and Fig. 2 is a horizontal cross section on line QMQ of Fig. l.

Referring to the drawings, l. indicates the furnace body'which may be of any well known shape or form and provided with a lining of highly refractory, electrically nonconductive 'material rlhe sole or floor 3 is made of electrically conductive material and is connected with circuit wire 9, constituting the terminal electrode thereof.

ln the walls of the furnace body are seated, fixed electrodes Ll and 4 arranged in two sets having thesame number of contacts lei and l5 similarly arranged in two sets and connected to said electrodes by short wires as shown. Branch wires l2 of circuit wire l0, equal in number to contacts 14, are connected .individually at will to said contacts by interposed. circuit closers 5; and the corresponding branch wires 13 of circuit wire ll are similarly connected by circuit closers 5 to the other series yof contacts 15'. -As shown in the drawings, the two lsets are iso- .55," lated one from the other, beingarranged in opposite sides 'of the furnace. Also, the eicel.

trodesof each setare electrically isolated from Aone another by a certain thlckness of 69 the lwalls and lining of the furnace body.

The electrodes of each set can be ccnnectedjf at will, with thesame phase of thecnrr'ent, each one apart, connection being/made by i.

means of well known forms of interrupters 5 and 5, arran ed in 'the branch'lines be,-

tween the electrodes and the main wires of the circuit;

or the entire'furnace body can be provided, if necessary, with an eXteriorwat-enjacket, the requisite precautions being taken for the electric isolation.

The top of the furnace, near the usual charging opening, is provided lwith a tube or flue 6 through which the gases escape.

damper plate 7 of well known form. lf desired, the door may be omitted and the. tube 6 connected direct to a suitable reservoir, not shown.

if combustible gases are evolved during treatment, they may be burned in the upper part of the furnace body, by injecting air through suitable twycrs 8 arranged at the proper points.

The lower part of the furnace, of course, is provided with two draw-holes, one for slag, and the other for melted metal.

The electric current passes through the materials to be treated in the furnace body, between each set of fixed electrodes and'be-l tween these lattcrs and the sole 3. As it is easy to understand, the intensity of the cui rent used, and, consequentlyl the temperature in the furnace, is regulated by the number and position of the fixed electrodesput lin circuit.

it is clear that there can be grouped together 'two or more furnace bodies similar to those described above, with or without communication one with the other and with or withoutv intermediary Crucible. the electric connections being arranged as required.

It is thought that the operation and use of the invention will be clear from the preceding description.

The fixed electrodes as well asthe Hoor 3,

vThis tube may be kept closed by a door or A san ' 'cody nor to provide a furnace body with .with circuit closers for `controlling *the course of electric current. l do not broadly claim combinations, but l Changes may be made in the construction, arrangement and disposition of the several parts of the invention without in any Way departing from the lield and s'cope of 'the same,and it is meant to include all suchv within this application wherein only a preferred forni has been disclosed.

lt is obvious that the circuit may-be made :from the bottom of the furnace up lthrough its contents obliqu'ely to any one of the electrodes of one series only, or to more than one. 0r the electrodes ot' looth series may be used in Whole or in part. rlhus l pro vide for a great variety in the currents traversing the material within the furnace both, as to direction, number and individual eiect with corresponding difference of result, all controlled by my two series of circuit closers, the several electrodes in the body or' the :furnace and the parts coperating therewith. y v

l am aware that it is not new to provide a furnace with anelectrically conducting floor or base and withan electrode in its electrodes at different heights and on opposite sides above the same; nor to provide a series of branch-wires governing electrodes,

What ll do claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. An electric furnace having an electrode in its base and two series of electrodes ar- 3 ranged in its opposite sides, in combination with contacts having electric connections with the electrodes of said series respectively, circuit wires 9, 10 and 11, ,the former being connected to said electrode in the base, and circuit closers 5, 5 individually'conlnected to wires 10 and. 11 respectively andl arranged to make circuit through any one'v or more of said contacts, and electrodes as. shown.

2. An electric furnace having an electrically cenducting floor and two series of elec trodes arranged in its opposite sides, in combination with contacts having electric connections with the electrodes o said se- 5 ries respectively, circuit wires 9, 10 and l1, the former being connected to said. Hoor and circuit closers 5, and 5 individually connected to wires 10 and 11, and arranged to make circuit through any one or more of 5 said contacts and electrodes as shown.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presencev of two Witnesses. F RANQOIS LOUVRIER. Witnesses:

JEAN UMAMA, GEO. LUnioNI. 

